Chapter 266: Unlikely Duos

Ned had to admit it. He needed Rassus's powers, even though he hated his method, he's got no other choice but to borrow it.

"Someday," Ned said. Raising his left hand to intimidate the stunned Kruthiks. "I will destroy you completely."

"Fuh!" Rassus's smirked. His voice was deep and only Ned could hear. "Don't get ahead of yourself, Ned. You don't know, we might be friends."

"I have friends." Ned stepped forward. Black clouds oozing his every step which made the beasts took a step backward. "And you're not one of them."

Ned was oozing black clouds. He looked like in Overclock but with black steam instead of white.

Behind, Katolin's mouth was hanging, and it took him a good moment to cover her surprised face.

"Ned," she said. "~Oh. You have that kind of cool looking powers hidden?"

Ned frowned from Katolin's exclamation and nodded. He went quiet without answering Katolin. This kind of power was something, not Katolin should be associating with.

It seemed that she doesn't have any memories of Rassus's, Ned thought.

It was a good thing since Ned doesn't want anyone to learn about Rassus. He might take over someone if he thinks that he can't control Ned. The bad thing was how to explain it to her? That would come later as the army of Kruthiks and the Evolved Kruthik approached him.

Ned began. To his left was black cloud coiling his arms, and to his right was the broken Butterfly in dreadful black.

With Rassus's new form of power, Ned cast aside exhaustion. It was as if Ned had come off from a long time sleep that his body needed a good form of stretching. He was full of energy, not to mention the mana, that even though it wasn't visible on his display, overflowing his body.

Ned dashed toward the Evolved Kruthik and turned to his left upon reaching about five meters across it, trying to lure the beast away from Katolin.

The Evolved followed with its spike trailing Ned.

Ned vanished and appeared behind four of the smaller ones. He cut one from behind and kicked the other. The two he then Devours.

"That's it!" Rassus exclaimed with joy. "Ahh, Ned. This relationship is going a good path."

He spoke as though a plate of his favorite food was served in front of him and with his mouth full. He was overjoyed that the black cloud expanded from Ned's body, looking for its next prey to Devour.

But Ned didn't let it happen, he plans to fight them but only Devours if necessary.

"Oh, Ned." Rassus's voice echoed inside Ned's head. Whether Ned liked it or not, he got another voice inside his head. "Don't be stingy. You'll like it soon. Oh! There! There!"

Ned's eye caught six Kruthik approaching him from his right, while eight more from his left. The ones on his right was Kruthiks with long jaws, and spikes, and tail waving behind them like scorpions. This was the first time Ned saw this beast. They might be stronger than the other.

But Ned had to back off as he evades the massive spike of the Evolved Kruthik.

"That bastard," Rassus said. "Better do something about that big ugly m—"

"Shut up!" Ned had to voice out his thought sensing that Rassus wouldn't stop talking. "You've got no control here, Rassus. So, you shut up, and let me do my thing."

Of course, Ned's thing was to do something about the Evolved Kruthik.

The spike hit air through his left and made the ground shattered.

With Ned's increase in speed, the base of the tower seemed to get smaller.

He killed eight even before the Evolved retracted its spikes and then landed near Katolin.

"Katolin," Ned said, his breath steamed of black energy. "Can you move?"

For Katolin, this was her first dragged on fight, too much that she used the mana that almost exhausted her. It was already surprising that she could fare with the Kruthiks even though she never really went into training. She stood with her back against the wall of the tower.

"I can fight," she said, "What do I do?"

The fight was dragging for too long, and Ned had to make sure that have to reach the plaza before Rassus's powers topped the limit.

"Can you hold the big one?"

"I can. How long do you want?"

"Not too long," Ned said, "I'll take care of the smaller ones. That way it will open our path to the other side."

They could have left the base of the tower without the army that blocks them.

Katolin prepared herself. But seeing that she could barely squeeze her mana out, Ned produced a mana crystal in a hurry and handed it to Katolin. He then vanished out of her sight and continued to Devour the army of the beast.

To Ned's surprise, he could only Devour one and two at maximum.

"Some of their levels are higher," Rassus explained, sensing that Ned was caught off guard by the third beast that he tried to Devour.

"Tsk," Ned said, "you should have told me sooner."

As Ned kept on Devouring and killing most of them, Katolin fought the Evolved one after she emptied the mana crystal.

Just how big is her mana capacity? Ned thought while he Devours another.

Now that he was free of obstacles, Ned made his way to the iron door but only to be halted by another wave of the smaller Kruthiks. Behind him, Katolin let out a groan as she was kept busy fighting the Evolved. But even though she was having a hard time, Ned saw that she was smiling. Perhaps now that she got to revenge her fallen comrades, and revenge herself from almost dying.

"Go on, Ned." Rassus pushed Ned to Devour. "Don't be shy, feel the power."

He wasn't lying, Ned thought. The more Ned Devour the more he felt that his body was getting stronger, and adapting.

They have been fighting for almost ten minutes, but the feeling of being fulfilled was constantly bothering Ned. He doesn't want to Devour, but it must be done since theirs no other way but to fight.

"Yes. More!" Rassus voice roared inside Ned's mind. "Fulfill the wish of these lowly life forms! Keep it coming! Come to me!" He stopped, and just when Ned thought that Rassus had enough, he began. "Oh! There it is, we're halfway there Ned."